Coveted
by Le Confidant
Summary: An unexpected visitor turns Winry's life upside down.
1. I'll See You Later My Love

So this is my first fan fic! So exited! It's set around 10 years post-canon and is Winry-centric. It is a darkfic of sorts and it's full of angst.

There will be adult situations going on since the characters are, well, adults in this story.

**UPDATE (July 22, 2012): This story has been proofread by TaIoRaFoReVeR523. Thank you so much for taking your time to help me better this story!**

Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Winry bent over to take a quick look at the apple pie that was baking inside the oven. The crust looked golden and the sweet smell of caramelized apples let her know that this pie was done. Over the years she had elevated the confection of pie making to a fine art, being just as good as Gracia's or even better. Winry took the pie out of the oven and let it cool down a bit on top of the kitchen counter so she could concentrate on finishing supper.

From the kitchen area she could hear all the ruckus her husband was making on the upper floor. He was leaving early in the morning for a long, long trip to Xing. For at least two months it would be just her and ol' Den(1) since Granny, heaven's rest her soul, had passed away a couple of years ago. Automail work would keep her busy though or at least she kept telling that to herself. Winry knew that if she couldn't tolerate the solitude she could just hop on a train, go to Rush Valley and visit her dear old friends. "Yes that is a good idea", she said out loud while thinking of all the things she could do out in the valley. Winry's train of thought was interrupted when she heard her name being called. "What is it honey?"

"I can smell baked apples. Is the pie done already?", Alphonse shouted from upstairs.

"Yes Al!", Winry shouted back from the kitchen. "After all these years I still can't believe you still this obsessed about apple pie", she chuckled, feeling pride of her cooking prowess.

"Great!", Al yelled back from upstairs ignoring Winry's smug comment, "I'm almost done packing!"

"Okay!" responded Winry from the dining room area as she was now setting up the table.

* * *

"Dinner was delicious as always Mrs. Elric", Al teasingly whispered into her ear from behind, mid-trip up the upstairs.

Winry turned around and observed Al's grinning face. "You are obsessed with food Al, you know that right? It's amazing you are not pudgy", Winry answered back while playfully poking her husband's belly.

Al gave her a mischievous smile and quickly retaliated her assault to his well-toned body core by sweeping Winry off her feet and swiftly carrying her the rest of the way to their bedroom. Alphonse gently laid Winry on the bed then he plopped himself right next to her. "Well not being able to eat for years can have that effect on a person besides-", Alphonse quickly shifted to be on top of her then positioned himself right between her parting legs, "-there is nothing in this world as delicious as you", he followed while pecking her lips. Winry gasped at the sensation of Alphonse's engorged manhood which at the moment was rubbing against her private parts. With a swift movement Al moved forward to once again claim Winry's lips keeping the playful foreplay going as long as they could muster.

"I want you now", she whispered wantonly in his ear letting him know that she couldn't wait any longer.

Al smiled and complied.

* * *

The morning of Al' departure was particularly cold, too cold for a Spring morning, so it was a good thing that she decided to wear a heavier jacket. As always the train station was not heavily packed since Resembool was still a small rural town the same as it has been for decades. For Winry that particular train station always brought bittersweet memories from a time long gone.

"Do you really have to go to Xing?", said Winry in what sounded like a plea for him to stay.

Alphonse sighed then looked at his wife's saddened blue eyes. He get got closer to her and affectionately cusped her face. "I have to go Winry. This is a very important trip otherwise I would have stayed here with you... Please understand."

"I'll be back soon. Promise.", he added while proudly displaying his winning smile.

"I know", she answered, her voice small.

Suddenly the unmistakable announcement to board the train was broadcasted through the PA system. Husband and wife kissed goodbye then he proceeded to board the train. Al already had a foot inside the train cabin when he stopped and turned around to face her.

"We'll try again. When I get back from Xing we'll try again. I have high hopes that this will be it", said Alphonse eyes full with determination.

Winry just stood there surprised. She never expected that Alphonse would bring _the_ subject up right at that moment. She just kept silent. Al smiled understanding Winry's reluctancy talk about such delicate subject. Turning around he then proceeded to board the train.

"Love you", said Al from his window-view seat.

"Me too", Winry responded back, slightly detached.

She waved goodbye waiting patiently on the platform until the train had disappeared into the horizon.

* * *

(1) This Den the Second who has the same name as the dog in the canon and is around 9 years old.

A/N: I hope the characters are not too OOC as personalities change quite a bit as one gets older. Also this story will speed up around chapter 3.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.


	2. Jagged Little Pill

**This story has been proofread by TaIoRaFoReVeR523. Thank you so much for taking your time to help me better this story!**

Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

The way back to the house was going to be a long one. Winry had never told anyone but she truly hated to be left behind. Life hasn't been kind to her in that respect. Her parents left her behind when forced to serve in the Ishvalan War and came back in caskets. Ed and Al left her behind for years in order to atone for attempting to play god and when it seemed that they were back for good, the brothers once again left her behind a decision that eventually affected her relationship with Ed.

Al's parting words didn't make her feel any better. Those words _we'll try again_ just kept playing in her mind like a broken record. This year marked eight years that they were husband and wife. It was also the year she was going to turn thirty and she still had no children to call her own.

* * *

Since day one they never took steps to avoid having children, quite the contrary, as both of them wanted to have a huge family. It was their shared dream to live in a house that was constantly filled with the laughter of children, children that would live happy childhoods unlike their own. Winry's train of thought was suddenly halted by Mrs. Dillon who was calling to her. The blonde discretely masked the annoyance she felt for the nosy woman.

"Hi hon!", chirped the old lady.

"Oh, hi there Mrs. Dillon. How are you today?", responded Winry with a screwed on smile.

"Oh I'm fine my dear. Just dandy", said the old lady noticing the direction that Winry came from. "Were you at the train station?"

"Yes, I was Mrs. Dillon. I was dropping Alphonse off as he has some business to take care off over at Xing." Winry was starting to feel uncomfortable with all the small talk. She hated small talk.

"Oh those Elric brothers are just the same", responded Mrs. Dillon then continued preaching. "Listen honey what you need to do is keep that husband of yours at home so he can make you a baby. You are not getting any younger you know. Don't you want to have kids?" Mrs. Dillon then starting talking about her great-grandchildren and how beautiful and bright they were then went on babbling about how lucky were the women in her family to have the blessing of being mothers. Winry just wanted to scream.

"Oh look at the time!" Winry quickly interjected. "I really have to go Mrs. Dillon. I have to tend to a client in half an hour. It was nice seeing you though. Goodbye!" She got away from Mrs. Dillon as fast as she could and continued her trek back home.

* * *

Being reminded of her inability to become a mother felt like swallowing a jagged little pill. Unexplained infertility was the doctor's conclusion as to why they couldn't conceive. "What kind of prognosis is that?", she grumbled to herself. She and Al seem healthy enough to be able to get pregnant so why it hasn't happened yet remained a mystery to both of them.

She tried all kinds of known methods that aided fertility, from traditional Amestrian remedies to foul-smelling Xinguese concoctions that Al lovingly prepared for her but none have worked so far. She concluded that if it was going to happen it would happen no matter what, still, she felt that the situation was starting to put some strain into their marriage even though neither one of them had yet voiced this out. Now Al wanted to try baby making one more time so she didn't know how this was going to fare in their relationship if they failed again.

* * *

Winry was so immersed in her thoughts that she didn't notice she already had arrive at the bottom of the small hill where her house was located. She could already hear Den barking a welcome home.

When she reached the house she immediately felt a vast emptiness enveloping her. She looked around at the empty house and sighed. "Work awaits!", she said out loud, hoping to dispel iffy thoughts that could creep into her mind. Once inside the house Winry changed her casual clothes for her trademark work overalls. The blonde then went into her shop to setup the working area. Once finished she sat down to wait for the first client of the day to knock on the door.

* * *

A/N: Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.


	3. An Unexpected Visitor

**This story has been proofread by TaIoRaFoReVeR523. Thank you so much for taking your time to help me better this story!**

Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

A little over a month had already passed by but Winry could swear that it felt more like a year. Yes, she did keep herself busy working on automail for her clients but it wasn't enough. Loneliness was bothering her to the point that she started contemplating once again that trip to Rush Valley. The automail mechanic took a quick stock on how many clients she had for the next two weeks. Thankfully there weren't too many so she could easily reschedule those appointments to a later time.

It was already nearing midnight when she was suddenly awakened by Den's barking. Winry was sleeping soundly so the sudden barking startled her quite a bit. Knocking on the front door accompanied the dog's barking. The blonde wondered who it could be at that hour of the night. Winry got up from the bed and once she put her robe and sleepers on, she then turned to the nightstand and grabbed her trusty ol' wrench just in case she would need it for self-defence. Heeding caution, Winry only went down the stairs when she heard the knocking for a second time. She started wondering if Al was back from Xing but quickly discarded that thought as it took around a month and a half just to travel back and forth to that part of the continent. Winry heard the loud knocking for a third time. "It couldn't be a client at this hour?" She really hoped that wasn't the case as she felt like knocking the lights out of whoever was behind the damn door. Finally she reached the front door. She took a deep breath in order to calm her nerves. The blonde proceeded to slide the door bolt open then turned the doorknob slowly making sure she had a tight hold of her wrench. Winry froze in place once she saw who was on the other side of the door.

* * *

"Hi, Winry."

Edward Elric was standing right in front of her. Winry wondered if she was still in bed dreaming.

"What are you doing here Ed?", she said with curt words and piercing eyes.

"It's been a long time huh?", he said sheepishly not taking his eyes away from the wrench in Winry's hand as he was trying to avoid getting hit by it. "I have business over at Central but on the last minute I've decided to take the late train here so I could pay my little brother a visit and-"

"-are in need of automail maintenance", Winry quickly interjected while sighing. "You really have some nerve showing yourself here after all this time."

"I know Winry, I know", responded Ed. "So where's Al?", trying to change the subject.

"Al is not here", she answered. "He went to Xing-business trip. You know how that goes."

"Oh", said Ed with slight disappointment. "Then I guess I'll be on my way." The ex-alchemist picked up his luggage, turned around and started heading back to town.

"Wait-", Winry hesitated for a moment but continued talking. "I thought you needed a check-up."

Edward stopped walking and turned around. "No, you assumed that Winry. It's ok really", he continued. "See you later. I'll stop again to see Al when I finish my business in Central. Hopefully he'll be back by then." Ed turned around and continued going down the hill, ponytail swinging from side to side as he walked.

Winry knew that with the upcoming Spring Festival there probably wasn't any vacant rooms left in town and despite their differences she wasn't going to let her husband's brother sleep out on the streets. Al would probably get mad at her if she did so.

"Don't go", she finally said. "The Spring Festival will start in a few days so I don't think there's any vacant rooms left in town."

Edward stopped on his tracks and turned around. "Hmm…I guess I forgot all about the festival", he mumbled to himself. "You really don't mind me staying?"

"No, I don't mind. You can stay in the guest room. You know the way." Winry stepped away from the door in order to let Edward in.

"Thanks Winry", said Ed while walking past her.

"Yeah, yeah. Make yourself at home", she grumbled. "I'm heading upstairs to get some sleep. Good night".

"Good night Winry."

Winry stopped midway on the stairs. "One more thing, tomorrow I will be checking up your automail leg. It still is my creation after all."

* * *

It was late morning when Ed woke up. He could hear noises coming from the kitchen area. He got up and went to the bathroom to freshen up when finished he headed down the stairs and straight to the kitchen. Edward stood in the kitchen doorway observing Winry while she made breakfast. The all too familiar scene brought a bittersweet smile to his face.

It took a few seconds for Winry to notice Edward's presence at the doorway. Being caught off guard like that made her blush a little but she quickly composed herself. "I didn't hear you come down."

"Morning to you too", said Ed while moving towards the coffee pot to grab some coffee. "Coffee?", he offered.

"Just had some a while ago."

"Hmm…smells good. Are you making omelettes?", said Ed after taking a big gulp of coffee.

"Yes", she answered. "I already ate so this one is for you." She plated the omelette and served it to Ed. "Please take care of the dishes once you finish your breakfast. I'm going to setup my things so I can take a good look at that leg of yours", she said while heading to the basement where the automail shop was located. "Don't take long."

"No problem. I'll be there soon."

* * *

Winry opened her toolbox and started to lay out the tools she needed for Ed's automail check-up. She still couldn't believe she was going to do this for him after all these years.

At one point Edward Elric was the love of her life. She waited so long for him to come home only to let him go once again. At one point in time the young automail mechanic was beyond herself when Edward proposed to her using that stupid "equivalent exchange" gibberish but after a year and a half of absence Ed came back to tell her to forget him. Something about that he was not good for her and that she was better off without him was his excuse to break his promise to her permanently. The ex-alchemist left on the next train leaving her with an unfulfilled promise and a broken heart.

The broken promise devastated her, but she was always a fighter, she continued moving forward. Shortly after the breakup Winry moved back to Rush Valley in order to forget the painful event and to forget Edward Elric.

Contrary to the saying, time didn't heal her wounds but it did effectively numb them enough to forget. Her life became all about her career as an automail engineer until one day an unusual customer came into Mr. Garfield's store. It was the other Elric that just came back from Xing. Always the gentleman the first thing that Al did when he saw Winry was to apologize for his brother's stupid behavior. Winry told him that it was ok that she already had gotten over his brother. A short time after that Alphonse asked Winry out and the rest between them was history.

Despite what happened between her and Ed, she never got in between the sibling's relationship. The Elric brothers saw each other whenever they had a chance while Winry kept her distance that way she didn't have to deal with Ed even though she didn't harbor any ill will against him.

* * *

Winry jumped a little when she heard Ed walking down the basement stairs. "Please lie down on the maintenance chair for me". Ed lied down as ordered. She flipped the magnifying glasses on and started examining Ed's leg.

Winry already knew that there was a minor problem with Ed's automail leg as his hip movements were slightly out of sync. Trying to figure out as to why he denied the fact frustrated her quite a bit.

"You know Ed, you could have been more sincere with me and actually admitted that you had a problem with the leg to begin with."

Ed glared at her but remained silent just to piss her off. Winry retaliated with a nasty look but decided to forgo getting into petty arguments with him. She then continued the automail assessment.

Winry was rather surprised at how good Edward's automail leg looked. The casing appeared well kept and the outer components didn't show any signs of problems so the problem probably was an internal. "It's a nerve connection problem", Ed spat out. Winry gave him a skeptical look. She decided to ignore his comment and proceeded to take out the outer casing of the automail leg. She made a thorough examination of the inner components and concluded that it was indeed a malfunctioning connection in the nerve endings. "How did you know it was a nerve connection problem?", she asked with extreme curiosity.

"Well, I've been taking care of the overall automail maintenance and nerve connections are the only thing I can't fix on my own", he answered smugly with a huge smile plastered on his face.

Winry gave him a dumbfounded look. "You are telling me that you have been taking care of the automail maintenance all this time?", she finally managed to blurt out.

"Well... Yes. I dabbled into human anatomy and automail mechanics a couple of years ago", replied the ex-alchemist.

Winry was simply left speechless. Edward Elric working on automail... It was un-be-lie-va-ble. It dawned on her that the alchemy freak had now turned into a gear head. "So you are a gear head now", Winry snickered at first then bursted into a laughing fit.

"Ha-ha. Fun-ny. Laugh all you want at my expense Winry." Intense golden eyes looking directly at hers. "I'm just glad that I was able to make you laugh again."

Ed was right she was laughing again, something she thought was never going to happen between them.

This admission made her smile.

* * *

A/N: Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I want to thank everyone who has read, reviewed, added alerts, or added this story to their favorites. It truly warms my heart and soul- e-cookies for you all!

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Edward asked Winry if he could stay at the house for a few more days. He told her that he was meeting with General Mustang back in Central very soon but he rather not spend time in the city just yet. Winry told him he could stay as long as he wanted. At that point she didn't mind the company as she was secretly enjoying spending time with him, besides she was already prepared to defuse any gossip about Ed staying in the house without Al being present.

The following days after their conversation seemed surreal to her. She had full on exposure to an Ed she had never seen before. At first she observed how Edward displayed his engineering skills as he went around the house fixing all sorts of gadgets that she had not been able to fix yet due to the high volume of clients over the past months. Later on she found herself silently spying on him while he was occupied with alchemy books and alkahestry scrolls that he took from Al's study room. She could see in Edward's eyes the same passion about alchemy that he carried when he was still the Fullmetal Alchemist. She felt deep sympathy for him and for the first time in her life she wondered if Ed truly missed being an alchemist.

Winry definitely found fascinating and alluring the way Ed was carrying himself nowadays but amongst the most shocking Ed-related discoveries so far was to find out how similar his demeanor was to Al's.

A few days later she came across the mouth-watering smell of beef stew when she came back from visiting one of her elderly clients. The delicious smell seeped from the kitchen through all rooms of the house and was making Den drool all over the place. Ed stepped out of the kitchen and went into the living room to greet her when he heard her come in.

"It's my way of thanking you for taking care of the leg the other day", he said when he noticed Winry's puzzled look. "You had a long day today, why don't you go upstairs and unwind? I'll call you once dinner's ready", he added while putting away the heavy toolbox that she carried when out on the field.

"Why is he doing this?", she said to herself when she reached her bedroom. Was he really just being nice? Was he really trying to make amends? Was he... Winry shook her head as she didn't want to assume that there were any ulterior motives behind the way Ed was behaving towards her but... why would she even think that in the first place? Deep inside Winry was grateful with how Edward was treating her but at the same time this treatment was starting to make her feel very uncomfortable. Suddenly the little voice in her head reminded her that this was the same Ed that walked away from her years ago. But did that fact matter to her anymore? And what about Al?

Winry ran her fingers through her hair when she sat on the bed. She then turned her gaze to a particular picture that was sitting on top of the dresser. She stared at it for a while, admitting to herself that she was starting to have mixed feelings regarding the current events happening in her life.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: ::SPOILER ALERT:: There are mentions of FMA movie the Sacred Star of Milos in this chapter as there are mentions of movie specific characters and movie content. It's nothing that isn't seen in the movie trailer but I've decided to warn you all just in case. It is actually futureverse for SSOM FYI.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

The mood was tense at the dinner table. Winry's demeanor changed drastically after she came back down. She looked taut and detached.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. Everything's fine Ed", she coldly answered. "I- I miss Al that's all", she then added as she didn't want to come across as a high-strung person.

"Don't worry Win. He'll be back in no time", he said trying to soften the mood.

"Don't call me that!", she screamed at him while slamming her fists on the table. Win was Al's pet name for her and Ed had no right in using it.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you", responded Ed slightly offended by Winry's behavior.

Winry knew very well that she was overreacting. She also knew that this high-strung behavior needed to stop before it raised some serious questions about her demeanor. Ed was leaving in two days so she just needed to hang in there until then. In the meantime she would avoid future awkward situations by visiting her clients at their homes instead of having them come to her shop but that left her to deal with the nights-

"Ed how you feel about going down to the festival?"

He looked at her and shrugged. "I don't mind going."

"Perfect!", she thought to herself. "Let me grab a jacket. You should grab one too. I'll be back soon!"

This year's Spring Festival was the talk of the town as it was the first time that amusement rides were introduced to the festivities. The main attractions, the ferris wheel and the carrousel, heavily contrasted with the more rustic scenery of sheep, sheep and more sheep.

When they arrived at the festival they were quickly bombarded by all types of sensory stimulations, from the sweet-smelling roasted corn-on-the-cob, to the constant 'bah' that came from countless sheep, to the bright flickering lights that were part of the amusement rides.

It definitely was a good idea to have come down to the festival as the festive environment would help her keep her mind busy and out of trouble.

"So where should we start?", asked a very enthusiastic Ed.

"The ferris wheel sounds good right now", she answered, her eyes glued to the curious contraption.

Ed grabbed Winry's hand and tugged her along. Winry was a bit alarmed by the gesture but went along with it, ignoring the voice in her head that wanted to impart some common sense regarding her behavior around Ed while in public.

They patiently waited in line until their turn came in. It was both their first time in a contraption of that sort and neither couldn't contain their excitement. Once in the cart they slowly began to move up with the loading and unloading of passengers. At this point Winry found herself curiously staring at Ed who was currently looking down below at the people that were still waiting in line for their turn on the ride. She realized that sharing those moments with him just felt right to her but she knew it was wrong, very wrong to feel that way still...

"Um Winry?", she thought she heard. "You're staring."

"Sorry! I didn't mean to", she said springing back from her stupor once she saw Ed's blushing face. "Wow! Isn't this fun?", was her lame excuse to change the subject and to divert away the awkward moment.

Still blushing, Ed just stared at her but said nothing in return.

It was getting late and Winry asked Ed to go back home as she had a client scheduled to come in early in the morning.

"So Ed, was this year's festival as good as you expected it to be?", Winry asked trying to make conversation while they walked back to the house.

"Better than I thought it would be. They don't have this kind of festivities back in-" Ed stopped mid-sentence as he realized that he had not talked about his private life since he arrived in Resembool days ago. In the past Winry never stopped to ask Al about Ed's welfare since they parted ways years ago but now she was dying to know out of sheer curiosity.

"It's ok Ed. I want to know what have you been up to all these years... If you don't mind telling me so of course."

Edward consented with a smile then continued talking about his travels from West to North to East and back West. He explained to her that his true intention was to search for a way to regain his alchemical prowess. After all his travels around the continent he concluded that regaining such alchemical skills, once you lost it or gave it up, was in fact impossible to achieve just as it was impossible to bring someone back from the dead. Edward quickly added that he didn't regret exchanging his gate for his brother and he would do it over again if given the opportunity. Winry smiled, pleased with Ed's answer.

He continued talking about his ties with the military working as a military contractor after her and Al got married. He had been working alongside the Bastard establishing new trade relationships with the neighboring countries after Mustang came back from aiding in the reconstruction of Ishval.

"So when did you learn to work with automail?"

He had a hearty laugh at her expense as he knew that she was going to ask him that question at some point. Edward confessed to her that he had to learn about automail repair out of pure necessity. A mission to Table City made this happen. He got seriously hurt in a riot that spurt out between the people of that city and some Cretan insurgents. It was their friend Julia that found him badly hurt and nursed him back to health. Old Gonzales worked on his automail leg which was thrashed from fighting. The old man was the one who taught him how to do simple automail repairs after finding out that Winry wasn't available anymore for maintenance or repairs. As a token of gratitude, Ed decided to stay with Julia's people for a while longer to help them out with establishing order in the region after the riots subsided. He admitted to Winry that the automail skills he learned from the old man had sparked his curiosity about engineering to the point that he developed a fascination with the flying contraptions that Julia's people used all those years back when they fought to make Milos a free land. With the aid of the engineers in the region he developed prototypes for manned flying machines that they decided to call airplanes. Ed finished his story by telling Winry that in less than two days he would be meeting with General Mustang to give him copies of the blueprints for these prototypes.

Winry attentively heard Ed's recount of his life. She was genuinely happy that so far Ed had lived a full and eventful life but she noticed that Ed didn't mention having any significant other, or others, in his life. Suddenly the thought of him with another person made her feel slightly jealous which in turn made her feel silly for but that wasn't going to stop her from asking him about the obvious omission. "So Ed, tell me about your lov- ah!"

Both of them got splashed with muddy water from a nearby puddle when a car drove by. A string of curse words blasted out from Ed's mouth accompanied by equally volatile gestures. She started laughing hard as it was the first time since he arrived at the house that he truly behaved like the old Ed would.

"What's so damn funny Winry?" he blurted out glaring at her while trying to squeeze out some of the muddy water out of his clothes.

At this point she was wiping her tears away from laughing so much. "Now there's the Ed that I know and love", she said without thinking. Ed was taken aback by her comment. Winry stopped laughing altogether and looked the other away. They continued their walk in silence the rest of the way back to the house.

* * *

A/N: Well, well, well. The story is now picking up speed. I do apologize if this has taken too long. I had to create a solid ambience for the premise first so the story could make sense... I hope I used the correct terminology to describe what I intended to do :)

Anyways, so what will Winry do or not do? You'll see soon!

Thanks to everyone that have read, fav or added alerts to this story! xoxo to you all!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I am following guidelines for M rating so this chapter here is modified to be M version however the original chapter is rated MA or NC-17 and that one can be found in my other account outside this network. Just go to my profile for the address if you want to read this chapter in all its lemony glory, yes, I wrote the word lemon. You will have to take away the spaces if you want the address to work though.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

When they reached the house Winry quickly rushed upstairs and headed straight to her room. Once inside she began scolding herself for her behavior when she was around Ed. It was clear to her that the more time she spent with him the more conflicted her emotions became and this was not fair to her and definitely was not fair to Al.

Winry took her muddy clothes off then stepped into the shower. The hot water helped her relax and clear her mind a little bit. She knew that the whole Ed situation was spiraling out of control to the point that now she didn't trust herself when she was around him. She needed to take immediate action against the situation before she ended up hurting Al, herself and her marriage. Winry finally decided to let Edward know that she changed her mind about him staying in the house any longer and that he needed to immediately leave early in the morning. She was going to tell him of this decision after she got out of the shower.

She paced the hallway for a while trying to gather the necessary courage so she could talk to Ed about her decision. She finally stopped in front of the door, her heart was beating fast. Winry took in a deep breath then opened the door and rushed inside the room.

Edward Elric was startled by the sudden intrusion into the room. He just gotten out of the shower himself and was re-wrapping a towel around his waist when Winry busted in.

Winry just stood there, mouth hanging open, with a face that was turning as red as a beet. She completely forgot why she entered the room in the first place. Frozen in place Edward was blushing as fiercely as she was. Feeling quite embarrassed Winry quickly turned around in order to dart out of the room as fast as she could but her efforts were stopped by a hand that suddenly held hers.

"Winry. Wait-", those words worked as an incantation that nailed her in place. The same hand that held her in place helped to turn her around.

"Don't go."

The hand now pulled her close to Edward cutting the distance between them. She could feel the intensity of Ed's mesmerizing eyes breaking down any inhibitions she had left. Winry could also feel her heart beating faster and faster. Ed pulled her in a tight embrace, the heat radiating from his body was intoxicating and she wanted to be lost in it. She pulled away from the embrace in order to gaze again into those amber eyes. She knew how desperately she wanted him and could see how desperately he wanted her. Winry finally surrendered to her inner desires and completely drowned the voice in her head that was telling with her to run away.

Their love making was hot, rough and primal. Both devoured each other with wantonly need taking their climax to a new orgasmic level. At that point Winry could feel her womb being inundated with Edward' hot seed. Their lust was satiated.

Unfortunately the afterglow didn't last much as regret was having a sobering effect on both of them. It took her little to no time in rearranging back her ruffled clothes before she she headed out of the room.

"Winry-"

She stopped when she heard her name being called. Winry look back at him with tears welling up in her eyes. Edward could see that guilt was written all over her face before she darted out of the room. He just stood there motionless realizing that he finally made love to the only woman he had ever loved, the woman who is his little brother's wife.

Winry slammed the bedroom door and slouched against it then slowly she dropped to the floor. The events of what just occurred in the guest room were playing in her mind like a broken record. She brought her hands to her face and bitterly started crying. Regret was leaving its nasty mark, something that Winry didn't know how to handle.

Sin. They sinned against the person that both were supposed to love dearly only because they coveted each other. How stupid could they be? How stupid could she be? Oh how she wished she could take back what just happened.

* * *

A/N: Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story. Makes me very happy that you like it so far.

This chapter is a pivoting point for the story so I am still undecided as to how I am going to end it. I do take your input in consideration so if you want to comment then please do so.

xoxo

Le Confidant


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Yes poor Al. I'm such a bastard.

:P

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Winry didn't remember at what point she felt asleep. She couldn't believe that she cried herself to exhaustion. After struggling to get up from the floor she headed to the bathroom. She was standing before the mirror looking at her disheveled appearance. Winry was so disgusted with the woman reflected on the mirror. Infidelity was something that she heavily frowned upon, a line that no one should ever cross. She used to look down at cheaters thinking they were worst than scum. Then what did that make of her?

Winry went back into her room and sat on the edge of the bed after taking a shower. Her eyes kept coming back to that same picture that was sitting on top of the bedroom dresser. The photograph was from her wedding day and it showed Alphonse fighting his way through her wedding dress skirt as he tried to reach for her garter. Winry candidly laughed, reminiscing the priceless memory, but quickly felt hot tears running down her cheeks. That picture reminded her that she indeed loved Alphonse, it also reminded her of how he had always been there for her in the good times and the bad times as the saying goes. Winry closed her eyes and sighed, her thoughts then shifted away from Al to Ed.

She still couldn't believe that they crossed the line but she wasn't surprised at all that it did happen since it was clear to her now that deep inside they had a longing for each other. She also realized that she still loved him. Winry sighed as she knew that she had gotten herself in quite a conundrum. Regardless of what happened between Ed and her the fact remained that it was just a night of passion, something that could surmised as a one-night stand, something that should have never happened in the first place.

It took a while for Winry to come down the stairs as she didn't want to face Ed just yet.

"So what happens next?" She winced when she heard Ed say those dreaded words to her from the living room as she was about to step into the kitchen.

Winry stood in place for a few seconds, digging deep inside her mind and soul for inner strength that would fuel her resolve, she then turned around and headed to the living room. The first thing she noticed when she entered the room was Ed's appearance. His eyes looked dull and his face clearly showed the signs of a rough, sleepless night. Winry then noticed that his bags were sitting right beside him. She sat across him and placed her hands on her knees.

"We continue living our lives as if nothing ever happened Ed", she finally expressed her resolve to him after a long pause.

"That's how is going to be huh?", he sneered. "You honestly believe is as easy as that? Because I certainly don't."

"And what do you suggest we do? Do you have any other brilliant ideas? It was a mistake, a horrible mistake what we did- and you know it!", she yelled back at him.

Ed pursed his lips and looked intensely her way for what seem like a lifetime. "You regret what happened between us so bad? Well I don't buy it. We both felt a special and intimate connection- and you know this is the true", he finally said.

Winry turn her gaze away. She did know that Ed was right, that she still had strong feelings for him but, she was not going to jeopardize what she had going with Al for him. Alphonse has been such a good husband plus he was deeply in love with her so who was she to hurt him even further?

"It doesn't matter if I did feel something as you say Ed. You had your chance years ago to be with me, to be my husband and I your wife. We could have been so happy together but-" Winry was now looking straight at him while trying not to shed any tears. "You made a choice then as I am making mine now- besides you should be thinking more about how you ended up betraying Alphonse than to be thinking about what was just essentially a one-night stand."

She was forced to manipulate Ed into guilt as she knows very well about the strong fraternal bond that exists between the brothers. She also felt that it was necessary to be callous with Ed as she intended to bury their short-lived affair one way or another.

Ed absorbed each of Winry's harsh words, one by one, as he felt completely responsible for what happened the night before. He had once again hurt Winry's feelings and now he has also betrayed his little brother's trust. Ed gave her a sorrowful smile acknowledging her resolve then stood up, grabbed his bags and headed straight to the front door.

Edward opened the door but suddenly stood still in front of it before stepping outside. "I don't regret what happened between us Winry. In fact I'm glad it did happen- don't worry Al will never know about this." He then walked away after closing the door behind him. Winry just sat there feeling numb but with the sudden urge of crying a river once again.

Ed had just walked out the door and she felt a deep sorrow enveloping her heart. "We continue living our lives as if nothing ever happened Ed", replayed in her mind like a broken record. She knew that nothing was ever going to be the same again between the three of them.

Winry could already foresee the consequences of their transgression. From Ed's end the close relationship between brothers would become strained as Ed, out of guilt and remorse, would probably avoid as much contact with Alphonse as possible. From her end she would have to learn to live with her own guilt and pretend that she was still the good and honest wife that her husband left behind when he headed for Xing. But what was the most despicable consequence of their transgression was the fact of having to keep Al completely in the dark about their sinful act. How long would they be able to keep such a shameful charade going?

The events of that morning's aftermath left Winry with a massive migraine. She could barely concentrate let alone work on automail repairs. Winry apologized to her first client of the day for the mediocre work she provided. She asked her client to come again later in the week, free of charge. Afterward Winry called in to cancel all the other appointments she had for the rest of the day.

She went into the kitchen to grab a glass of water so she could down some strong painkillers that she usually prescribes to her post-surgery clients. She then went upstairs and plunged herself on the bed trying to succumb into a sweet, drug-induced oblivion.

* * *

A/N: So how about that? I'll bet you didn't expect this outcome... Oh and please don't burn an effigy of me. I promise there is a good reason for how this chapter was written. More to come!

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story. You make me smile!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Winry was able to get back to work the day after Ed's departure but the rescheduled appointments and the already backed up orders threw her schedule off quite severely. She really didn't want to think how she was going to get everything all finished in a timely manner before Al's return from Xing. At least she was grateful that the workload would keep her so busy that she would hardly had any time to think about what happened in the past few days- or to think about Ed for that matter.

It was slightly after six o'clock when she heard someone rasping on the shop's door. Winry was slightly annoyed as there was a huge 'Sorry We're Closed' sign hanging on the door at eye level that pretty much said it all. She really didn't have time to waste on dismissing whoever was on the other side of the door as she had so much to do in so little time. The rasping of the door stopped but curiosity had already caught Winry's attention and she wasn't going to be able to work in peace until she opened that door. Begrudgingly Winry got up from her chair but immediately after she stood up she heard the noise of a key being inserted into the door's keyhole.

"Al?", Winry said in disbelief as she saw the tall and handsome figure standing in front of the opened door. It was like deja vu all over again.

* * *

Winry felt her heart sink to her feet when she saw her husband standing in front of the opened door while holding a huge bouquet of red roses.

"Surprise!", he said with a huge smile. "I'm back!"

Al rushed towards where Winry was standing and held her in a loving embrace. "I missed you so much- oh, and these flowers are for you."

Winry was still in shock from the surprise. How could he be back so soon? "Welcome home Al- how did you get back to Resembool so early? I thought that you were going to spend at least two weeks in Xing", she finally said after she snapped out of her stupor.

"Winry Elric", he lectured, "if I didn't know any better I would think that you are not happy to see me back."

Indeed she was not happy that Al was back as the prospect of him being back home sooner rather than later never crossed her mind. Panic suddenly struck her as she worried about the possibility that she was being too transparent with her feelings. "No honey I am just very surprised to see you back so soon. I thought it took several weeks just to travel to and from Xing", she quickly said while trying to sound nonchalant. She grabbed the bouquet and smelled the roses. "They're beautiful Al- thanks."

Alphonse kindly smiled at her then continued to address the previous line of questioning. "About me being back so early, well, I finished my business over there rather quickly and since I missed my dear wife so much, I decided to return as soon as possible", he answered when he walked inside the shop and sat down in the maintenance chair.

"In fact I was supposed to be back three days earlier if it wasn't for some freakish sandstorm that hit the area near the Xerxes ruins", he added.

"Lucky me", she sarcastically thought. Her face darkened when she realized that her deep buried feelings for Edward would have never been unearthed and the subsequent affair would have never happened at all if Al would have arrived in time.

"Win, are you alright?", asked Al perceiving that something was bothering her.

"It's nothing- I have been busy these past few days that's all. I really wanted to have finished all of this work before you came back", she answered while pointing at the row of half machined parts and incomplete automail limbs.

"Don't worry about that Win. I knew very well that this could have been the case, either that or to find an empty house as you did mention to me the possibility of going to Rush Valley in my absence", he answered while tenderly looking at her blue eyes. "I was dying to be back here in our lovely home that's all."

Winry held him close to her so he couldn't see her face. What could she say to such a devoted husband?

"Love you Al- and welcome home honey", she finally said with a half smile cast in her wistful face.

"I'm glad to be back", he said as he happily held on to the warm embrace.

* * *

Winry was woken up by the sudden shift of the bed. Still half asleep she managed to sit up and look to her right. There laid Al's naked figure still sleeping snugly by her side. She smiled, a force of habit really, as she liked to watch him sleep like this but now it was different. Remorse marred what used to be a loving and heartfelt moment.

They made love quite a few times on the night of his return as she dutifully complied with her role of wife. At the beginning she was tense. She could still feel traces of Ed all over her and she honestly thought that Al would find those traces on her too. Once her fears were dispelled she immersed herself in a sea of passion but for the wrong reasons. Her mind knew that every kiss, every caress and every thrust was her husband's but in her heart she felt it was Ed the one who was making love to her. It was Ed's name the one that she silently called for every time she came. How was she going to follow her resolve and become the devoted wife that Al deserved when her heart clamored for Edward?

She hated her despicable self once again.

* * *

A/N: I've already decided the ending for this story and it probably will be a controversial one. That's the reason I wrote The Next Step.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I want to let everybody know that this story is getting darker specially after this chapter almost until the end.

Oh! I am also changing the genre to angst/hurt,comfort... Yes I know... (O.o)

Don't worry there will not be any character deaths in this story.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

During the following weeks Winry was able to deal with the events that turned her life upside down. She forced herself to forget about Edward and to dedicate her entire life, heart and soul, to Al just as she swore to herself that she was going to do when she forged her resolve. It took a lot of willpower but she managed to exorcise Edward's presence from all aspects of her life, including when she was intimate with Al.

* * *

Several weeks had passed since Al was back and Winry was still buried in work. After a throughout survey they realized that the workload left was too much for Winry to finish on her own, fortunately Alphonse was not teaching at the moment so he helped Winry with the medical portion of her job. With his help she was finally able to properly attend all pending appointments while Al took care of the new ones. She even had time to finish automail orders commissioned from Rush Valley within an acceptable time frame.

* * *

Winry was grateful that Al was very skilled in alkahestry. Alphonse already had gathered a substantial amount of this Eastern knowledge by the time he came back to Amestris and decided to go on that fateful trip to Rush Valley. Over the years Al established a close friendship with Emperor Ling who eventually asked him to teach some of his most skilled followers about Western alchemy thus discovering his natural talent for teaching. Eventually Al asked Ling if he could bring back to his homeland all of the alkahestry skills that he had acquired over years of training in Xing. At the time Ling hesitated as he knew that Amestris was still changing its government infrastructure and alkahestry could be have been used not as a healing tool but as a weapon of destruction for personal gain. In the end he did grant permission to Al for opening up a small alkahestry school in Resembool that taught well-intended alchemists to learn the basics of Xinguese alkahestry.

Al opened up his small school where once stood his parent's house. Somehow he convinced Ed of erecting the new building with the excuse that teaching a type of alchemy that aided people instead of hurting people would make their parents proud. He taught in the same strict manner as his former alchemy teacher, taking in the best of the best after the poor prospects passed a test that closely mirrored what Izumi had made him and Ed go through in Yock Island.

* * *

Before closing the shop for the day Winry decided to move some heavy steel ingots that she ordered a while back when she suddenly felt weak and dizzy. She dropped the ingots on the floor and then she dropped herself to her hand and knees as she suddenly loss her strength. Al was in another room when he heard the ingots crash on the floor. He rushed to Winry's side when he discovered her on the floor in all fours.

"Are you Ok Winry? Tell me what's wrong?"

Her head was spinning now and it was making her feel nauseous.

"You're looking pale Win", said Al out of concern. "Let me help you up."

Al started to check her vitals after he helped her sit on a maintenance chair. She still looked pale and felt cold to the touch. Immediately Winry's eyes opened wide. She got up from the chair and ran as fast as she could towards the shop's bathroom. He went after her when he heard her heaving.

"Winry! I'm taking you to the hospital right away", Al said in a panicked voice.

She had finished puking and was dragging herself to the sink so she could wash her face and rinse her mouth. "Don't overreact honey. It's probably something I've ate- or it could be exhaustion from so much work", she said while drying her face with a small towel.

"I will take you to the doctor tomorrow. No excuses", he said genuinely worried.

"Ok Al", she said with a smile. "Like I said, it's probably nothing to be concerned about."

"I'm beat so I'm turning in early today. Thanks for worrying about me. Love you", she added before going upstairs.

* * *

A/N: I am currently writing the last three chapters of this story. Those have been the hardest to write so far. I'll try to keep posting weekly if I can get those three to work the way I want to.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story. Thanks for keeping up with the craziness!

xoxo


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I was going to post this chapter over the weekend but I'll be too busy to post by then. From here on the story will be intense. Lots of angst and melodrama...

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Alphonse dropped Winry off at the doctor's. He would be taking care of some errands while Winry waited to be attended. She wasn't feeling any better as she got sick again earlier that morning. After a long wait the nurse called her and escorted her into a small checkup room where she took Winry's vitals. After that initial checkup she escorted Winry once again but this time they headed into the doctor's private room. Winry sat down and greeted the older man then waited for the medical evaluation to begin. The doctor started the evaluation by asking Winry about her symptoms which she recited one by one. He then asked her if she had any fever or abdominal pain. Winry answered that she didn't have any of those symptoms.

"Mrs. Elric. When was your last period?", he asked while browsing through the medical history in her record.

Winry blinked at first as she thought that it was a stupid question but then she realized that she had lost track of her last period with all the chaos that had ensued in her life during the past two months. Winry suddenly felt that tightening sensation in the pit of the stomach when one realizes that something has gone terribly wrong.

"Two months ago", she managed to spew before sinking into shock.

The doctor noticed her reaction but interpreted it as an unexpected surprise. "Two months late- and according to the records you and your husband have been trying to conceive for a while." He flipped through some more papers. "Well- it looks like you are most likely pregnant Mrs. Elric. Congratulations!" The doctor stood up and shook her hand.

"That can't be-", she said to herself while staring into space.

"I know you've had a hard time with trying to conceive and I understand your hesitance towards the news. I'll tell you what- why don't you come in tomorrow and I'll get a rabbit[1] ready for testing. It'll cost a bit more and it'll take some days to have a conclusive result but that result will definitively confirm your pregnancy."

Winry knew about that inhumane method of pregnancy testing. She would never succumb to such primitive methods, not that she needed it anyway as the series of events from the past several weeks clearly pointed out that she was pregnant. "It's fine doctor. I'm sure that you are correct in your prognosis. Thank you."

* * *

She walked out of the room feeling like she was in the middle of a bad dream. Why now out of all times did she had to get pregnant? Winry started to hyperventilate. She needed to get out of that office fast. She wanted to escape from the dire reality she had been thrown into, even if it was for just a brief moment.

Winry had been walking aimlessly for a while now, trying to put her thoughts in order while she walked, but her efforts did not work as she expected. Suddenly she felt the urgency to seek comfort in her family and headed towards the graveyard instead of returning to the doctor's office. When she arrived at the graveyard Winry went directly to the Rockbell's lot and dropped herself to her knees in front of her mother's grave. Her father and grandmother's graves laid at each side of her mother's grave. She brushed her hand against the headstone feeling all the bumps and indentations that the headstone's surface possessed. While she moved her hand across the headstone Winry imagined she was caressing her mother's hair. When she finished this ritual, she propped herself back and sat down in a way that she could see all three headstones at the same time. Winry started talking to them.

"Hi mom, hi dad, hi granny. Guess what? I went to the doctor's today because I was not feeling well and I found out that I'm pregnant. Can you believe that?"

She laid her hands on top of her abdomen just below her navel and closed her eyes for a moment. Tears were gathering across her closed eyes.

"I am so happy for it- Heh! After all this time I'm going to be a mom!", she gave out a nervous laugh. "But", her voice started to crack at that point. "I screwed up big time because- because I don't know who is the father of my baby."

"I'm so sorry!", she started bitterly crying.

"I'm so scared mom", she said after several long minutes had passed by.

"Granny- why did you leave me? I need you now more than ever." She started weeping.

"What am I going to do now? What am I going to do?", she said, almost as a whisper, while looking at her father's grave.

* * *

When Winry reached the house it was almost night time. The lights in the house were on so that meant that Al was back. He was probably worried sick as she was supposed to wait for him at the doctor's office.

Talking to her family gave her some respite. She clung to the idea of the high possibility that the baby was Al's. She did some mental calculations and the window for fertility was broader when she was with him than with Edward, but still, the fact that she finally got pregnant when Ed was around haunted her mercilessly.

* * *

Al had been waiting for her in the living room. "Winry! Where have you been? I've been worried sick."

He stood up and walked to where she was standing. "Why did you leave the doctor's office? What happened?" He held her by her arms waiting for an answer.

"Al I- I'm pregnant Al."

His bronze eyes twinkled with her response. "You're serious?"

She answered him with a nod.

Al couldn't contain his excitement. He looked at her with the widest grin he had ever displayed then hugged her with all his might.

"I'm going to be a dad!", he said while pulling her away from the embrace in order to give her a kiss.

"Yes honey. We're going to be parents", she said then she started to cry.

The deceit had now reached a new low. She cried because she had to continue lying to her husband. She cried because she regretted that she made love to Ed. She cried because she was now paying dearly for the consequences of her acts and ultimately she cried because this was not the way she pictured her life was going to be.

Winry prayed with all her heart that this baby was truly Al's.

* * *

A/N: You probably expected this to happen from what I wrote on the last chapter.

Yes this story is hard to swallow but I do want to portray a very real situation that could happen to anyone just because they committed a mistake. I hope I don't offend anyone with this as that is not the intention.

[1] In the 1920s they did use a rabbit for pregnancy testing purposes. (randomhistory dotcom /1-50/ 018pregnancy. html) Sorry but I can't override the URL.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story. I do hope you'll stay with me 'till the end.

xoxo


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Yeah... I didn't expect that the story would get this gloomy when I started it. I wanted to take the idea of "mistakes can happen even to the best of people" to its limits and I think I've done it. So the next two chapters are going to be quite angsty but I promise that the story will not end in tragedy.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

"Mama, mama! Let's go mama!"

The little golden-haired boy was running up the hill as fast as he could. He wanted to go play with his dad who had just come back from teaching alkahestry for the day.

"Van! Don't run like that!", Winry shouted from the distance. "You're going to fall!"

"-but dad is home!", the little boy shouted back.

"I know he's home honey but you have to wait for mommy. What have I told you about being patient?"

Van reluctantly stopped and waited for his mom to reach him. He gave her his hand to hold then continued walking together towards the house.

* * *

"Al, honey we're back!", shouted Winry from the living room.

Al came down the stairs when he heard his name being called. He was about to enter the living room area when his son jumped on him.

"Dad!"

Alphonse landed on his behind. He laughed out loud then grabbed his son and started tickling him mercilessly.

"S-stop it dad!", little Van said while he giggled.

"Never!", Al mischievously answered and continued such ministrations.

Winry smiled as she watched the tender moment unfold before her eyes. She couldn't believe how that little boy had brought so much love into their home and stability into her life. It was moments like this that made her reminisce about the life she lived over the past five years.

* * *

Winry had a stressful pregnancy not because she couldn't physically handle the pregnancy but because psychologically she couldn't handle her current situation.

During her entire pregnancy she did all she could to not draw any suspicions of her uncertainty about the baby's father, but it was a task that was nearly impossible for her to achieve. Thankfully, Alphonse didn't seem to notice the real reason behind Winry's tumultuous behavior. He just blamed the crazy pregnancy-related hormones for such behavior thus remaining completely unaware about the truth of Winry's dilemma.

At some point during the first trimester she convinced herself that her unborn child was Al's. She was holding on so desperately to that ideal because she desperately wanted to become the happy family that Al and her had always talked about. She also ingrained in her mind that it was the only way to attain redemption for betraying her devoted husband with his brother.

The first thing Winry did when she held Van Elric for the first time in her arms was to cry as that perfect little boy eased her troubled soul. Winry noticed that Van was not a carbon copy of Al or Ed. His facial bone structure reminded her of her late father's and his body coloring was hers but the baby did possess the golden eyes and hair of a person that carried the legendary Xerxian heritage in their blood.

Winry was happy that the baby didn't look completely like Al or Ed but she was secretly relying on her baby's physical traits to help her identify who of the two Elric brothers was Van's father.

To her misfortune Van's core personality reminded her so much of Edward when he was at the same age yet it was the little details about Van that convinced her about her little boy being Al's. She noticed that Van was taller than Ed was at the same age, he was also gentler than Ed could have ever been and he loved to drink milk.

Over the years her uncertainty diminished. She knew that what mattered the most was the fact that her boy was a happy child, just as she always imagined a child of hers was going to be.

* * *

"Van, Al. That's enough rough housing for the day", she said while breaking the two of them apart. "Van we have to get you all nice and clean before supper."

"Aw!", answered the two of them at the same time.

Winry sent a stern look their way enforcing her stance as the authority of the house.

Al and Van looked at each other then at her and grinned. "Grab her!", both said in unison.

They knocked Winry to the floor and began tickling her without mercy. She was laughing hard while trying to escape from their grasp. Laughter echoed all over the house and that made her the happiest woman alive.

At last she was at peace with the life she now had.

* * *

Alphonse just had put Van to sleep. He went to his study room after tucking in the little boy. Al was looking for a specific alkahestry scroll that he needed for his next class. He took out of the closet an Eastern-style chest that was filled with alkahestry scrolls and related materials. Al went through the chest trying to find the scroll that he needed when he stumbled across an old unopened letter postmarked from Xing. The letter dated from five years ago. At first he was slightly puzzled, not recognizing the unopened letter, but quickly remembered why he had such letter in the first place.

Five years ago he went to Xing on a trip to visit Dr. Huang, a renowned healer from Ling's court. Dr. Huang possessed the highest degree in alkahestry attainable. The venerable healer also had a top notch education in Western medicine.

Emperor Ling granted Al an appointment with the famed doctor and healer. Alphonse thought that Dr. Huang's advanced alkahestry techniques combined with Western science would help him determine if he was the cause of Winry not being able to get pregnant. Al never told Winry that this was the true nature of his trip all those years back but he almost gave himself away when he told her that he wanted to try to conceive once again when he came back from Xing.

He agreed with Dr. Huang that he was going to send him the results of his tests by mail as soon as the doctor got them ready, but by the time the results arrived Al had already found out that Winry was pregnant. At the time Al thought that the test results contained in the letter would just confirm what he already knew so he disregarded the letter altogether and stashed it in the alkahestry chest thus completely forgetting about it.

Now he found himself toying with the unopened letter, curiosity had already piqued his mind. Al sat down on his study room chair. He grabbed a letter opener that he kept in the top drawer of his office desk. He sliced the envelope open and carefully pulled the envelope's contents out. At first he was casually reading the letter but then Al's face began to darken as he got to the part of the test results. He had to re-read the letter again to verify that he correctly understood what he just read.

* * *

Alphonse crumpled the piece of paper in his hands once he finished confirming that he had indeed read correctly the contents of the letter. He then let the crumpled piece of paper fall from his hands and onto the floor. Al bent forward on the chair and laid his elbows on top of his knees while running his hands through his hair. When he looked up, his eyes were fixed on a family picture that was sitting top of his desk. Al felt like choking when he thought of the day that the picture was taken as it had been on his last birthday. His usual kind demeanor quickly turned bitter when he shifted his gaze to the other picture that was sitting across from the family picture.

"Why Brother?", he said to the grinning man in the picture while trying to suppress the pain that was quickly building up in his heart.

* * *

A/N: In case you've wondered: 1) No, I don't hate Winry nor Al. That's just the way this story goes. 2) Yes, Al will have his say in this.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story. I'm glad you have an open mind about subjects like this.

~ Le Confidant


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Last chapter was the meltdown so this one is the fallout. Al is understandably OOC still I tried my hardest for him to still sound like Al.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Winry suddenly woke up in the middle of the night when she noticed that Al wasn't sleeping by her side. She put her robe on and headed downstairs to search for him. She went into Al's study room as she saw the lights were on in that room. When she entered she found Al slouching on his chair staring at the family picture they took on his last birthday. Winry also noticed a quarter-empty bottle of hard liquor that was sitting on top of the desk.

"Al?", she asked him in a wary tone.

Alphonse shifted his gaze from the picture to her then back to the picture. His eyes were red and glassy due to a combination of alcohol and what looked like crying. Winry wondered what had happened to him as Al was not a person that liked drinking in the first place nor he drowned his problems in alcohol.

"Honey you're scaring me. Please tell me what's wrong?", she said as she was approaching him. He didn't answer her but he did bat her hand away when she tried to touch his shoulder.

"Don't touch me", he snapped at her.

Winry took a step back, feeling fear about the sudden aggressive behavior. She could see now that Alphonse's eyes showed an unexplained fury. He stood up and handed her the picture that he was staring at. A buzzing sensation caused by trepidation was quickly overtaking her body. "Why are you giving this to me Al?"

He didn't answer her question but look at her while carefully choosing his next set of words as the alcohol in his system was affecting his train of thought quite a bit.

"Five years ago when you told me that Ed stopped by and stayed over. You told me that during that time you two managed to resolve your differences", he paused, taking a deep breath to calm himself. "-this is how things went right?"

Winry nodded a 'yes'. She was not able to articulate her response as fear was slowly grabbing a hold of her voice.

Alphonse was now pacing in front of her with a sardonic smile screwed on his face. "Of course- I remember you telling this to me like it was yesterday. At the time I thought that finally we all could be one BIG happy family. Heh- I really was so happy for you both."

He started laughing out loud almost like a madman. When he stopped laughing he quickly grabbed Winry by the arms and glared into her eyes. "Tell me Winry, how did you liked being FUCKED by my brother?"

Winry paled. She felt her heart sink to the bottom of her feet. How did he find out? How did it happen? Did she slipped up? Did Ed confessed? Winry knew that no matter how many questions she asked herself the fact was that somehow Al found out.

"Al you're drunk. You don't talk like this- just stop this please", she said to him, her eyes were cast down trying to evade his inquisitive stare.

"So you're not denying it? Of course you aren't. YOU CAN'T DENY IT!", Al yelled to her face. Winry flinched.

Yes she couldn't deny it, she wasn't going to deny it. She was tired of the lies and the deceit, but she had to say something. She had to make him understand that she didn't mean to cheat on him, that it was a mistake, that he was the man she loves. "Al I-"

Al cut her mid sentence.

"Why him Winry? WHY HIM?, he yelled while shaking her. "Did you forget what he did to you?" Al closed his eyes and took another deep breath. He was now trying to control his anger with all his might.

Winry didn't defend herself but her eyes welled up with tears.

"All this time- I was just Ed's replacement all this time wasn't I?", he said, lamenting himself. With a quick jerk Al released Winry from his grasp then yanked the picture away from her hands and looked at it again. He was touching Van's image.

"-and you know what's the worst part of it all?", his anger changed into a deep sorrow. "That Van is not even my son."

"SHUT UP!", she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Just shut up!", she couldn't take it anymore. "Why are you making such ridiculous accusations?" She felt like a cornered animal.

Al gave out a sarcastic laugh as he realized that she couldn't have known about the letter. "Ridiculous accusations you say?"

He went back to the desk, bent over and picked up the crumpled piece letter that contained the test results. He returned to Winry and gave her the letter. "Read and weep."

Winry straightened the piece of paper and read its contents. Her eyes widen as she was completely in disbelief. "What the hell is this?"

"Those are test results that confirm that I can't have children Winry." Hard eyes were looking at her. "That was the reason for my trip to Xing five years ago", he added.

She started shaking all over. She didn't want to comprehend what Al had just told her. "No- impossible. Van is your son Al! He has to be!"

* * *

Winry felt as if she was loosing her mind. Her worst nightmare had just become reality. "Al- he's your son", she said sounding defeated.

Alphonse walked past her and headed to the front door. Winry immediately followed. She saw him grabbing his jacket from the coat hanger and opening the front door.

"Where you're going Al?", she dared to ask him, dreading his response.

"I can't stay here Winry- it's too much to bear. I can't even look at you right now without feeling enraged." His eyes were fierce. Hard. Sad.

"Don't go", she clenched her hands around his fist. "Al it was a mistake-"

"Let go", he snarled.

Winry knelt on the floor pleading for Al to stay. "Please Al! I love you. Van loves you!", she yelled in desperation.

Al just kept silent.

"Please don't do this, please don't do this- Al please don't do this!", she was weeping uncontrollably at that point.

Alphonse yanked his hand away from her grasp and stepped outside the house. He took one last look at his wife who was now sobbing.

He turned around and walked away.

* * *

A/N: So how was it? This was the hardest chapter I had to write with chapter 11 running for second place. There is no more harsh angst as I plan to steer this battle-worn ship and take it into clear waters until the conclusion of this story.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story!

Lots of love to you all!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: I agree, that confrontation was rather intense but a necessary one... and now here's round 2.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Even after a month had passed she hurt the same way as the night Al walked out on her. Winry lamented with all her heart that she didn't come clean when she had a chance. She tormented herself constantly thinking that, if she would have told him the truth, Al might have forgiven her. Her soul cried every time she remembered Al's heart-broken look on his face. She suffered because Alphonse thought that she had used him, that she didn't love him when that wasn't true. Winry had a chance to let Edward be part of her life once again but she didn't take it. She chose Al.

* * *

Thankfully for Winry, the townspeople hadn't found out about their abrupt separation. Even in the fallout of her marriage, Al was discrete. Apparently he had been telling everyone who have asked why he was away from his family that he was undergoing a special type of training which needed him to be away from major distractions.

She was also grateful that her son hadn't been affected by Al suddenly leaving the house. Like everyone else in town Van believed that his dad was doing something important and that he would be back anytime soon. Winry understood that this 'story' was a temporary means to a solution but she knew that she somehow needed to work things out with Al, for Van's sake.

* * *

Alphonse had cooped himself in his small alkahestry school. He found that through deep meditation he was able to clear his mind from anger and resentment. Now that he was better grounded, Alphonse couldn't believe the way he behaved towards Winry. He realized that the deep sorrow he felt combined with the inhibiting effects of alcohol made him react in a way he regretted happening in the first place. He had hurt her. He had yelled at her. He didn't even give her a chance to explain herself opting to run away leaving her and Van behind.

* * *

Alphonse knew himself better than anybody. He knew that he had too much compassion for everyone, specially for the people he cherished the most. He tried to cast away his feelings for Winry but Al loved her too much and knew that he couldn't easily let her go. He also knew that he would end up forgiving her for her mistake, heck, he was even going to forgive his brother for betraying him too.

It tore at Al's heart the fact that Van wasn't his son but it tore at his heart even more the crude reality that Van was going to wound up getting hurt and confused by the mistakes committed by the adults that he look up to.

Al contemplated various solutions that would benefit Van in the long run. He had to admit to himself that he was very tempted to take over Winry's deceit. If he did, he would still be Van's dad and he would still have his happy family, but, he knew very well that his conscience wouldn't allow for such aberration to happen.

After much thought, Al knew it was time to face Winry once again. He just hope that he could reach the wisest decision when he did meet with her.

* * *

"Dad!", Van shouted when he saw Alphonse walking into the living room. He ran over to his father. "I missed you so much!"

Al felt a knot forming in his throat. He had to focus on something else so he wouldn't break down in tears. "Hi there bud! I've missed you too", Al managed to say then he hugged Van tightly. "Where's your mom?", he asked him once he let go of the boy.

"She's working", the Van answered then took his dad's hand and dragged him to where Winry was.

"Mom! Dad's back!", shouted the happy little boy.

"Al", she said with a solemn look on her face.

"Hi", he awkwardly answered back.

"I didn't expect you to come back", she said after standing up from her work bench.

"We need to talk."

Both of them looked at Van who was just staring at them trying to figure out what his parents were talking about.

Winry knelt in front of him so she could talk to him at eye level. "Van, honey. Would you like to spend the night at Jimmy's house?"

"Sure!", he answered while displaying a wide grin.

She warmly smiled at her son's gesture then stood up and walked towards phone. "I'll call Jimmy's mom right now and ask her if you can sleep over there tonight. I'm sure she won't mind."

She took Van by the hand, after finishing her phone conversation with Jimmy's mom, so she could get him ready for the sleep over.

"I'll take him there", Al said when they passed him by.

"Ok", Winry answered then headed up the stairs and disappeared from his sight.

* * *

Winry was waiting for Al in the dinning room when he got back from taking Van over to his friend's house. She asked him to sit down while she went into the kitchen. When she came back Winry had brought with her a piece of warm apple pie and a glass of milk for him to have.

"First off I want to apologize for my behavior that night. That wasn't me. It was the alcohol doing the talking", he said to her after finishing his pie. "-but I am here now because I need to know why you didn't talked to me about what happened between you and Ed five years ago. I know you didn't intend to hurt me but you did- why couldn't you trust me Winry?"

She pursed her lips momentarily, her eyes were downcast. "Al- I'm so sorry for what I did. Believe me when I tell you that I never meant to hurt you. Please understand this."

Winry now had a mournful look in her face. "I was scared Al", she continued after a long pause, "I got- we got carried away. What happened was a mistake."

"Do you love him? Please be sincere with me", he said to her with an intensity that only an Elric would possess.

Winry was glad that Al had given her the opportunity to explain herself and this time she wasn't going to mess it up. "Yes Al. I have always loved him. I thought I was over him but-"

"Is that why you slept with him?", Al intruded getting a bit anxious about the course that her response was taking.

"In a way, yes, but it wasn't planned Al. We just got entangled in the heat of the moment then one thing led to the other and-", she didn't finish her answer as she was trying not to break down into tears.

Alphonse was grateful about Winry's sincerity but her words didn't ease his already grieving heart.

"Winry- why did you marry me if you have always been in love with Ed?" He dreadfully waited for her answer.

Winry could see in Al's body language that it took a lot of effort for him to ask her such question. She waited a bit to answer his question as she was carefully choosing the right words to explain why she chose him over Ed. "I've married you because you are a great man Alphonse Elric. You are a true gentleman and the kindest person I've known. You are funny, handsome, sincere and devoted."

Winry grabbed his hands and looked into his dark golden eyes. "The love you gave me, made me fall in love with you Al."

A doleful smile was cast across Al's face as he now had his answer.

"Winry, Ed needs to know about Van", he said changing the subject.

Her face twisted, showing displeasure, as she wasn't ready to deal with Ed just yet.

* * *

A/N: Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.

It's because of you all that I'll keep on writing.

~ Le Confidant


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Now here it is, the final round, the confrontation between Al and Ed and the longest chapter of all.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

From his private cabin Edward Elric saw the small town of Resembool appear in the horizon. He immediately looked at the time on his old silver pocket watch. He noticed that there was still another hour to reach his destination. Edward then put his watch away and kept looking at the horizon taking the borrowed minutes to reminisce.

* * *

Ed had kept his presence away from Resembool since the moment he was shunned by Winry five years before. He maintained his promise to her about concealing what had happened between them from Al, but this concealment came with a high price tag. He had sacrificed the close relationship he had with his younger brother as Ed just couldn't bear looking at him in the face and act as if nothing had ever happened.

Sometimes he took time to meet with Al in Central. Edward reasoned that this way he could comply with his role of big brother without raising any suspicions, but at times his half-assed attempts to work on such a forced role weren't enough, specially after Van was born. Ed had to constantly tell Al that he was extremely busy in order for him to stop asking to come over to Resembool. His repertoire of excuses included work, top secret engineering projects and constant traveling. He felt horrible for having to shamelessly lie to his brother but his guilt was enough encouragement to do so.

Ed used to think from time to time about Winry. He constantly imagined how she was doing, if she was happy or if she ever thought about him. Sometimes this train of thought led him to remember the night that he made love to her. Ed finally had a chance to let loose all those feelings that were bottled up deep inside him for almost a decade. He loved Winry, always had, but he wondered if she loved him too or if she just used him as she so coldly implied that fateful morning when she turned him away.

Winry's rejection made Ed imagine how life would have been if he had taken her as his wife. He chastise himself for being such an idiot for letting her go but it was his blind fear about ruining the lives of the people he loved that drove him away from her. Edward truly believed that he would make Winry suffer the same way that the bastard-he-used-to-have-for-a-father made his mother suffer when he abandoned her a lifetime ago. He certainly didn't want this future for Winry, so he stepped aside and let her go. At the time he honestly thought that he was going to be able to get over her when he took that painful decision but eventually he realized that he couldn't forget her at all.

Ed came to the conclusion that he committed a stupid mistake and was planning to win her back but he never had a chance to execute this plan. His world shattered when he found out on a casual meeting with Al that he had asked Winry's hand in marriage and that she had accepted. Ed was in complete denial about such turn of events, as it tore his heart apart, but in the end he made his peace with their decision. He knew that Winry couldn't have married a better man.

Edward never contemplated the idea of making Winry his during his short stay in Resembool five years before. His strong desire to have a taste of the woman he loved was fuel enough to blur that thin line between what's right and wrong. Even to this day he doesn't really regret making love to her as he coveted her since the day he found out that she was out of his reach, even if that meant hating himself for betraying Al's trust in him.

Ed never expected to have mixed feelings when he found out that Winry was pregnant. He was genuinely happy for her and for his brother but there was a dark, selfish side to him that wished he was the one giving out such joyful news instead of receiving them. Edward decided to cast away any feelings he had for Winry upon hearing the news. Once again he tried to move on, endlessly seeking for the woman that would make him forget her. In his search he dated countless women to the point that he stripped the Bastard out of his Ladies' Man title but no woman was able to claim his heart the way Winry had.

* * *

Alphonse was waiting for Ed on the train platform. He couldn't shake away the awkward feeling he was currently experiencing. Al hadn't seen Ed in almost two years and the fact that he now harbored some animosity towards his older brother didn't make the situation any better.

Ed spotted Al first and rushed towards him. He greeted his younger brother with a huge grin followed by a big hug but Ed quickly noticed that his affection wasn't reciprocated with the same enthusiasm and that made him worry. He quickly dismissed this concern thinking that it was awkward tension that arose from being away from Al and the family for too long. Alphonse helped Ed with his bags then drove away from the train station.

"Al where are we going?", asked Ed, noticing that Al didn't take the usual route to his house.

"To the alkahestry school."

Alphonse's laconic behavior was starting to unnerve him. Ed stared at him, trying to spark a conversation with his younger brother, but Al just kept looking straight at the road. He now had a hunch that Al knew of the affair but he kept quiet about it as he planned to confront him once they reached their destination.

* * *

"Are you going to tell me what the hell is wrong with you Al?, he said as soon as they stepped inside Al's alkahestry school.

"I think by now you know you've figured out what's wrong with me Edward."

Ed frowned as Al only uses his full name when he's upset with him. He was correct in his hunch about him knowing the truth. "When did she tell you?"

Al didn't answer his question. He just stared at him with clenched fists. "Why Ed?" Al wanted to beat the crap out of his older brother but he wasn't going to as he already sworn to himself that he would remain calm at all costs. Al was going to try to put himself in his brother's shoes so maybe, just maybe, this way he could understand why Ed betrayed him.

"Al-", he stopped mid sentence as he thought it was unbecoming of him to give lame excuses for his past mistakes. "I love her. Always had and always will", Ed finally said going straight to the point, awaiting to be beaten to a pulp, but Al just stared at him and didn't move an inch.

"Ed you knew that I love her-", his voice was full of sorrow. "Why did you have to be so selfish?"

Edward looked away. He felt despicable. He wished with all his heart that Al would pounce on him, beat him senseless because that's what he would do if he was in Al's position but he knew that wasn't going to happen. Unlike himself Alphonse was too much of a gentleman to succumb to such barbaric methods.

"Edward- do you honestly love her or did you just took advantage of an opportunity that was presented to you?", hardened eyes glared at him. "Please tell me which is the truth Ed."

"This is hard for me to say Al-", he looked at his younger brother while taking his stance. "Winry has been the only woman that I had ever loved. Yes, I took advantage of the opportunity presented not because I wanted to use her but because I wanted love to her- even if it was for just a moment."

"Then why didn't you marry her when you had your chance?" Al angrily countered.

"Because I feared that I would hurt her, that I would make her suffer", Ed now walked in front of a collection of old pictures that Al had hanged off the wall, "I didn't want to do to Winry what HE did to mom. I couldn't have lived with myself if I did", he added while pointing at Hohemhein's sad and defeated figure portrayed in their old family picture. "Heh, I guess I did hurt her- and you- in the end."

"Oh Ed-", Al's anger was quickly replaced by pity. He now stood beside his older brother staring at the same picture. "You're such a damn fool Brother."

"Al-", he said still looking at the portrait. "I was happy when Winry decided to marry you. She chose the right man, period. You have proven time and again that you are an excellent husband and a devoted father", he then turned his face to look at Al, "I hope with all my heart that one day you can forgive me for betraying you the way I did Al." In that moment his face looked just as sad and defeated as their late father.

A bitter laugh bubbled inside of Al as he couldn't believe how ironic the current situation really was. "There's something you should know Ed."

Edward looked at him perplexed. What else was there to unveil?

"The Gate Ed- maybe because my body was there for so long-", Al rambled.

"Al?"

"No 'chi' Ed. I can't have children- I'm sterile", he paused in order to give Ed time to process the information.

Edward's eyes became huge as plates. He was left utterly speechless. Al took out the worn letter that contained the infamous test results and handed it to his brother. Ed read the results and folded back the worn paper. "I- had she known about this?", Ed said while running his hand through his hair combing his long bangs along with the movement.

"She didn't know Ed, not until I showed her the letter. She was pretty upset when she found out."

Ed had to walk to the nearest chair so he could sit down as he felt his legs beginning to falter. "I- I'm so sorry Al. I'm so sorry", Ed clenched his jaw hard because he didn't want to cry in front of his younger brother.

"I know you both didn't mean for any of this to happen but it did- now is not the time to cry about past mistakes. We all have to work things out for that little boy's benefit so he doesn't end up resenting the people he loves", Al said while putting his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Now let's go home. I'm sure you'll want to spend time with your son- and to have a talk with Winry."

* * *

A/N: If you were expecting a fight well... Al wasn't drunk. This is how he would have handled things with Winry if he didn't have anything to drink or would have been under so much shock. Two more chapters and this story is done!

Here's a fact for the story: Al was Winry's first. They didn't get intimate until they got married.

I'm planning to translate this story to Spanish over the rest of the Summer then I'll get back to writing new stuff.

Thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.

xoxo


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: I went back and forth withe trying to come with a solution for their dilemma. This is the fairest course to take.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

Winry was outside the porch playing with Van when Al and Ed arrived. Van ran towards Al and gave him a big hug which Al reciprocated with an even bigger one. When they separated Al stepped away so Ed would come into view. Van observed the man with the long golden hair that looked so much like his dad. "That is Brother right dad?", Van asked recognizing the man from family pictures that were hung around the house.

"Yes Van that's my older brother Edward. Guess what? He came here all the way from Central to spend time with you. Isn't that great?", Al answered to the boy while messing up his hair.

Van giggled. "Stop it dad. You're embarrassing me in front of uncle Ed."

Edward's throat tightened, swallowing a sob.

* * *

Van was understandably shy around Ed as he was still a baby the last time he saw Edward but he quickly warmed up to him. "Hi!", the boy said while displaying a huge grin that looked so much like Ed's when he was at that age. Van then approached Ed and hugged him the same way as he had hug Al.

Edward couldn't hold back any more the barrage of feelings he had been holding inside his heart since his talk with Alphonse back at the alkahestry school. He started to cry when Van hugged him. "Hi there little man", was the only thing he could say to him between sobs. Ed lifted up his head and looked at Winry who was teary-eyed.

Alphonse noticed the exchange of looks and knew it was time for them to have their conversation.

"Van let's go inside. Let's leave mom and Ed to talk for a bit", Al said after Ed let go of Van. The boy followed Al inside leaving Winry and Edward alone.

* * *

"Winry-"

"Van's a great kid you know", Winry interjected.

"Sure looks like it", Ed replied.

"It was hard for me to admit it but he takes so much from you-", Winry added along with a half-cast smile, "but I was in complete denial about this fact. My desire to have a happy family alongside Al was all that mattered to me to the point that I didn't even want to consider the possibility that he was yours. Then Al finds out that Van isn't his in the worst possible way and-"

She covered her face with her hands and started to cry.

Ed sat down beside her and momentarily held her in his arms. He pulled a handkerchief from his coat and gave it to her then took his time before picking up the conversation where Winry left it off. "I take it that you really despise me Winry", he sadly asked.

Winry looked at Ed while wiping her tears away with the handkerchief he had just handed to her. "In a way- yes", she admitted, "I have despised you, hated you even, because you have hurt me so much Ed, SO much, but- it's ironic- because thinking back, you have also given me some of the best things I had in my life. You gave me Van."

Edward looked down. He never expected to hear such response.

She wrapped her hand around his and cupped his jaw with the other so he could look at her. "I've forgiven you a long time ago Ed. I don't harbor any ill will towards you anymore." A sincere smiled followed her words.

Ed's eyes welled up once again.

"Winry I never meant to hurt you. I've been such a fool from the beginning and believe me when I say this but I regret with every fiber on my body that I didn't do you justice", he confessed. "I remember swearing to myself that I wasn't going to be like Him-", thinking about Hoemheim brought bitterness to his face, "I guess I ended up becoming the same kind of bastard that my father was."

"It's ok Ed", she wiped away a runaway tear from his face with her thumb. "It's not too late. You have- no, we have now a chance at redeeming ourselves."

Edward looked relieved. He was so grateful that she had also forgiven him. He felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Yes, will work something out", Ed said to her while kissing the top of her head. "This time we will make things right. For Van, for Al."

* * *

"Good for you Winry. Good for you Brother", Al whispered as he walked away from his vantage point behind the living room window. He headed upstairs as he had some things to do before the next morning rolled in.

* * *

It was after midnight when Alphonse headed to his study room. He sat down at his desk then grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and started writing a letter. When he finished writing the letter he picked up the family portrait he cherished so much and looked at it with tearful eyes before placing it inside his luggage bag which he had stashed away in his room earlier in the day. Al picked up his bag but, before heading out, he went to Van's room and kissed him goodnight.

* * *

Edward heard faint sobbing coming from the kitchen area. When he walked in he saw Winry crying over at the breakfast table.

"Winry are you alright?"

Winry looked up and he could see that she had been crying for a while. Ed saw a large manila folder under her arms and a white piece of paper sitting next to it. She had this look on her like she wanted to say something but she didn't. Winry just slid the white piece of paper his way. Ed sat down and grabbed the paper. It was a letter written by Al.

* * *

_Dearest Winry,_

_This probably is not the best way to do this but I found that this was the best course I could take as talking to you in person would just waver my resolve. Winry, I want you to know that you had given me the happiest years of my life since I got my body back. I know that you do love me dearly but your love for me is one that grew over the years we spent together and not one that was there from the beginning. It hurt like crazy to find out that you and Brother slept together behind my back and I've already forgiven you both for it but it was because of that incident I've come to realize that my love for you could never compete with the love you always felt for Ed. The truth is that you both never stopped loving and caring for each other and I am not going to be the dividing force between you two any more. For that reason I am setting you free Winry. It's what's best for everyone, specially for that little boy that had been the apple of my eye since the day he was born. Winry I love Van with all my heart, in fact I am crazy about him, but the reality is that I am just his uncle and Van needs his real father. He needs Ed. I want Van to grow up in a stable home with his mom and dad by his side so he doesn't grow up resenting the people that are part of his life. There is still time to turn things around as Van is still very little and eventually he'll most likely is going to forget about me ever being his dad. Brother is a good man Winry. I know that he never meant to hurt us so please give him another chance to make it up to you and for him to become the great father I know he can be. You can become a happy family if you both work at it. Attached are the divorce papers. I've already signed them and now it's your turn to do so. Don't ever think that this decision was an easy one Winry. In the end your happiness, Van's happiness and Brother's happiness is all that matters to me. Don't worry about me I'll be fine. I'll move on. I'm eternally grateful for the years that I've spent with you and Van. Please promise me that you and Brother are going to work things out, for Van's sake._

_Always yours,_

_Alphonse_

* * *

"When I woke up this morning that envelope was on top of Al's desk."

Ed was at a loss for words. He just stared blankly at the letter not daring to look at Winry. "What happens now?" was all he managed to say.

Winry looked at him. She was clearly devastated. "I don't know Ed. I can't tell you right now", she curtly answered.

"I guess time will tell", she added.

* * *

A/N: Yup it had to go that way. I hope you are not too disappointed. I am rewriting the epilogue as it was brought up to my attention that the ending was too out-there and too taboo. I don't want to drop the ball at the end so I am taking her advise on reconsidering the ending... Still the new epilogue is one of three possible endings I had in mind.

Thanks Miu Furingi for the advise and thanks again to all who have read, alerted, faved and reviewed this story.

~Le Confidant


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Tah dah! It finally comes to an end... Here's the epilogue and no it's not sad as the previous chapter. I've altered it completely since the previous idea was too taboo and I don't want anybody running for the hills because of me. XD

Anyway I know this ending will be liked by many and as one of you PM me: let's have an EdWin FTW.

I don't have a beta so please no flames! Hope you enjoy!

PAIRINGS: AlxWin, EdxWin

* * *

"Winry I need to thank you for letting Van go over to Xing with me. He really enjoyed the trip", Al said to Winry who was looking at Ed and Van from the porch. They were assembling a dragon-shaped kite that Al and Van had brought back with them from their recent trip.

"You don't have to thank me Al. He is your son too", she answered as she lay a hand on his shoulder.

"Hm. I guess he is- in a sort of unconventional way", Al said out loud while pondering about how their lives had changed since the divorce three years before.

* * *

At the beginning Van didn't adjust well to the revelation that Edward was his father and to make matters worse Van started acting out shortly after Winry signed the divorce papers. He shunned Ed because he felt that he took Al away from him and because of this Winry decided it was for the best that Ed just sporadically visited Van until the boy adjusted to his new life without Al. Unfortunately Van didn't adjust. He was getting in all sorts of trouble by picking up fights and bullying everything and everyone. When things turned for the worst Ed stepped in without Winry's consent and finally set the boy straight. Ed felt a deep connection to Van as he knew very well what it was to hate a father. It was from that point on that Van warmed up to Ed and started looking up to him as a fatherly figure.

Eventually Van voiced out that he missed Al terribly and that he wanted Al to be more than a mere uncle, he wanted Al to be the dad he had always been to him. Edward and Winry agreed to Van's request and contacted Al. The three of them sat down and formed a mutual agreement that the boy was to spend time with both Ed and Al. Their agreement had worked out wonderfully and Van was a happy little boy once again.

* * *

"So how are things between you and Ed?"

"They've been fine since he moved in", she answered.

Al looked at her and understood that this time they were putting a huge effort in giving each other another chance. "I'm glad for you both. It was about time that you two ended up together."

Winry gave him a consternated look. "You are ok with this Al?"

He looked at her while displaying a warm smile. "Of course I am Win. Anyway it's not my place to have a say in it. We are divorced after all", he suddenly grinned at her like a mischievous kid, "Besides- I'm in a relationship myself."

She was shocked. "Are you and Mei?"

"No-no Winry. Mei is just one of my alkahestry teachers and a very good friend. About six months ago I went to Milos to do some research and I saw Julia", Al got all flustered just by thinking about the beautiful red head that he, along with Ed, had helped years ago to free her homeland from oppressing forces.

"You and Julia?", Winry was completely taken by surprise by the news. A tinge of subtle jealousy streaked her words.

"Yes. We immediately clicked and since then we have fallen in love."

Winry smiled. "I am truly glad for you Al." She was genuinely happy that Al had found his happiness.

"So?", Al asked trying to change the subject, "When are you and Brother going to tie the knot?"

"I- I don't know. We haven't talked about it yet." It was Winry's turn to get all flustered. She really hadn't put much thought about the subject. They have been living together for about a year now but in that time Ed hadn't said a word about it and she didn't want to rush Van into something he might not be prepared for.

Al sighed. "That idiot brother of mine. I'll have a talk with him before I leave-"

He was cut mid sentence as Winry stood up and walked towards the veranda. She was now paying attention to a small fight that have sparked between Ed and Van about how to assemble the kite. She sighed. "He's become a carbon copy of Ed."

Al chuckled. "That's great Winry because it means that they care deeply for each other. Trust me on this. Ed and I- we used to fight the same way for even the simplest things."

"Yeah I remember- and you used to beat the snot out of Ed everytime."

He laughed out loud reminiscing those childhood moments. "You know- Van told me that he wants you two to get married."

Winry was surprised as it was the first time she heard of this. She was pleasantly relieved to hear that her son wanted this too. "First that knuckle-head has to propose."

"He will Win. He will."

* * *

"Hey dad hurry up!, Van shouted to Al, "Father and I are going to do a test run on the dragon kite!"

"I'm coming!", Al shouted back. "Gotta go Winry!" He kissed her on the forehead before running to were his son and older brother were at.

"You boys have fun!", she said in a cheery tone.

Winry kept watching the interactions between the most important men in her life. They looked very happy together and that in turn made her happy. Thinking back their lives had never been normal. It felt to her that from the beginning they were living on a roller coaster, riding the ups and downs of what humans call life. It wasn't the perfect family but in the end she had the happy family that she always wished for.

* * *

Ed stopped what he was doing to let Al take over the maneuvering of the kite. He turned around and looked back at the house and saw how Winry was very amused at their expense.

"Laugh all you want Winry!", he shouted from the distance, "Because I'll guarantee you that I'll have the last laugh in the end!" He finished his words with a huge grin plastered on his face because little did she know that same evening he was going to amuse himself at her expense by the reaction she was going to have when he asked her to be his wife.

* * *

A/N: I do hope you liked the ending. Yes I made it a happy one. The good muse inspired me well. I honestly was going to end the story on a sad note as to covet is a sin but the words above were the ones that came out of my brain and voila. You might be wondering why I didn't do an AlxMei pairing, well, that's because I hate Mei with a passion. I think that she is the most horrible character from the FMA world (besides Noa) and AlxMei is just as ridiculous as Edvy or mpreg. Besides I personally think AlxJulia makes more sense than AlxMei.

At some point I will write the prequel for Coveted. This story will show how Winry fell in love with Al. :P

Thanks for sticking with me all the way. I'm eternally grateful to everyone who took from their time to read, review, alert or fav this story.

Just want to let you know that I am cooking up the concept and outline for a horror fic involving Ed, Win and Al but for the rest of the Summer I will work on translating Coveted to Spanish.

~À la prochaine mon amis!~ Le Confidant


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